Soon, Pierre parked his car in front of Calla's apartment building. Calla glanced out the window, then turned to Pierre. I don't know how to express my gratitude to you this time," she said with sincerity. "I've told you, you don't need to be so polite with me," Pierre said, looking straight at her.Calla nodded, then unbuckled her seat belt. "I'm leaving now. Bye."As Calla reached out to open the car door, Pierre quickly called out, "Calla!""Yes?" Calla turned back to him, puzzled.Pierre looked down and smiled. "Won't you invite me up for a drink?"Hearing this, Calla stared at him, quickly weighing her options. Pierre was making a pass at her, but she was only a divorcee. Besides, she had no interest in getting involved with any man again.As such, Calla smiled and politely declined. "Honestly, my place is quite a mess. It's really inconvenient for me to invite a man upstairs.""I see." Pierre nodded, seeming to understand.Right when Calla was ready to leave the car,
Pierre's words struck a chord with Calla. Although it was a modest space, she had devoted countless hours decorating it. Every nook and cranny was a reflection of her personality.Looking at the tidy home, Calla smiled and said, "Those who wander yearn for the warmth of a home. Alone in Greendale, I can only make my little space as cozy as possible. It helps me not miss home so much."She was putting on a brave face, but she was homesick being here alone. However, she didn't intend on returning to Riverford anytime soon. She had used the excuse of her company sending her for a year-long study program to convince her mother.With no family or friends here, Calla felt very lonely outside of work.Yet, the new environment meant she spent less time overthinking. This was a stark contrast to her days in Riverford.Gradually, she grew to like it here. Though not as bustling as Riverford, the air was fresh, the local snacks were tasty, and the rent was cheap.Pierre looked at Calla, the
"Why? Is it because I'm Mercer's cousin? That's not fair to me, and you know that." Pierre's countenance grew stern.Calla felt the onslaught of a headache coming. She had been so unlucky in love these past few years. It felt like every guy she met was nothing but trouble."I don't understand why you don't get it. Look, I'm not looking for anything right now. I don't have any feelings for you. Mr. Garland, if there's nothing urgent, I'm feeling quite worn out and would like some rest. Please see yourself out!" Calla suddenly regretted letting Pierre come in. Still, it was good to clear things up once and for all so that he'd give up.Calla's dismissal left Pierre rooted to the spot. It was a struggle to make himself move, but being the gentleman he was, he forced himself toward the door.Calla crossed her arms over her chest, not looking at him. She was hoping he would leave as soon as possible. She didn't want to be involved with any man anymore.When Pierre reached the door, h
A flicker of disappointment crossed Pierre's face. But ever the gentleman, he quickly composed himself. His gaze lingered on Calla with deep intensity. "I should be the one apologizing. I've disturbed you. I'll leave now." With that, he turned to open the door and then walked out. After hearing the door close, Calla turned her head to confirm that Pierre had indeed left. Feeling very tired, she sunk onto the couch.Pierre was a man with a sense of justice, kindness, and determination. Although sometimes a bit of a flirt, he was still a good man. Yet, they weren't destined to be together.A week later, Calla returned to work at the travel agency. As soon as Floyd saw her, he pulled her into the office with a broad smile. "Calla, have a seat," Floyd said, sitting at his desk and gesturing for Calla to sit down.Calla was surprised to see Floyd's exaggerated smile but sat down anyway. Although Floyd had always been nice to her, he had never worn such a fawning smile, making h
As time went on, even her closest colleagues began to shun Calla. Rumors circulated that she had influential connections. To avoid any potential complications, everyone started giving her the cold shoulder. Calla eventually felt isolated and distressed.After struggling for a few days, Calla decided to resign.When Calla placed her resignation letter on Floyd's desk, he was alarmed. Floyd quickly stood up, his concern evident. "Calla, is the treatment here not up to your standards? Your salary is already quite high. Look at Piper. She works so hard leading tours every day yet still doesn't earn as much as you do."Calla quickly raised her head to explain, "Mr. Burrows, it has nothing to do with how the travel agency treated me. It's something personal on my end.""Then, why are you leaving? We can't do without you here. Remember when your friend helped us out with the tourism bureau? "Things have been great ever since. All the other agencies are green with envy. If you leave,
Therefore, Calla decided it was better to ignore everything. This way, nothing could affect Calla anymore.The watch in the package was a Longines, worth at least several thousand dollars. Pierre could afford better but probably feared she might refuse something too expensive. He bought a watch that was in the mid-range, not quite high-end but not cheap either.Calla eventually put away the watch with its packaging intact. Due to the rapid obsolescence of certain tech products, it was a good idea to upgrade phones from time to time. Since her old one broke, she decided to use this new one for now. Looking at the new phone in her hand, Calla hesitated. After some consideration, she put the phone in her pocket. Floyd's request could wait. His travel agency had been running for years without any issues, after all.A week later, Calla successfully resigned from the travel agency. She then began searching for a new job.With her CPA certification in hand, she set her sights on accou
Calla left Miriam Accounting Firm and headed straight for the hospital. At the hospital, Calla realized how severe this flu outbreak was. The hospital was completely overwhelmed with patients. Calla frowned as she looked at the long line of people ahead of her. She figured it would take a couple of hours to get her prescription filled.Feeling exhausted and weak, she decided to go to a small clinic instead. She soon picked up some medicine and then went home to rest. After taking the medication, Calla drifted off into a hazy sleep.In the evening, she felt chills all over her body. At this point, she somehow managed to get up and pour herself a cup of hot water.Having eaten a few crackers and taken more medicine, Calla went back to sleep. This time, she slept until dawn and found herself too weak to even get up.…At 10:00 am the next morning, Avery knocked on Miriam's office door. "Come in," Miriam said, looking down at an accounting ledger on her desk.Avery entered ju
"Hello?" Miriam said just one word into the phone. But when she looked down, the call had already been disconnected, leaving her frustrated. She tossed her phone onto her desk, feeling disappointment and irritation with nowhere to direct her feelings.A little over a month ago, after a long period of no contact whatsoever, Pierre reached out to her. What's more, he even personally came to Greendale to invite her to dinner. Miriam dressed up and happily went to the appointment, only to find out that Pierre's purpose for inviting her out was to ask her to look after Calla, who had just successfully landed a job at her accounting firm.At that moment, Miriam felt like a herd of wild horses were running through her mind. However, she couldn't refuse Pierre's request, as that would make her seem too petty. Besides, she was also curious to know what kind of woman could make Pierre give up on Wanda.In reality, what Pierre asked for wasn't much. He just wanted Miriam to keep him update
Seeing Pierre's expression, Calla realized that a few words wouldn't dispel his suspicions. She reached into her bag, unzipped it, and pulled out the knife.Pierre's eyes widened as he noticed the gleaming knife Calla was pulling out of her bag. He furrowed his brows in concern. "What are you—"Calla explained, "Mercer told me that Casper is my son, that he wasn't stillborn as I was told. I didn't believe him at first, but I was afraid he might be telling the truth, so I went to his house to see him."But I was afraid he might have ulterior motives toward me. As a woman, I'm naturally no match for him. In a moment of desperation, I had to grab this knife from the kitchen for protection. If he dared to do anything to me, I wouldn't have hesitated to use it on him."Her expression was intense, reflecting her genuine fear and resolve.Pierre looked deeply at Calla, then gently touched her cheek. He took the knife from her hand and placed it on a nearby table.Calla then rushed into
Suddenly feeling Mercer's hand on her shoulder, Calla instinctively recoiled. She swatted away his hand and shouted, "Don't touch me, Mercer!"The harm he had caused her was too profound. Even though she now understood his desperate reasons, she still felt immense aversion toward him."Fine, I won't touch you." Mercer retracted his hands and left them suspended in the air."Don't think you can use Casper to threaten me, Mercer. I will never be manipulated by you!" Calla shouted at him.Mercer's expression turned pained at her words. He took a step back, and his eyes filled with profound anguish. "Do you really see me as someone who would use my own son as a bargaining chip?""Yes," Calla replied sternly.Mercer's body swayed slightly, then he turned away in dejection. "If that's the case, then you should leave."Seeing his forlorn figure, Calla felt a pang of sadness, but she couldn't bring herself to trust him again. She turned and walked out of the house.She stumbled out of
At this moment, Mercer clenched his fists. Even with his resolute nature, his eyes seemed misty."This is where I feel most sorry toward you and Clover. Clover is my daughter too. Of course, I wanted her to come into this world healthy. But I couldn't let Casper disappear from this world either."His condition worsened so severely at that time. I was afraid he wouldn't make it to your due date, so I had to take drastic measures..." Mercer struck his fist hard against the wall.Seeing the despondent and remorseful Mercer before her, Calla felt a twinge of compassion, but she still couldn't accept all his explanations.Glancing at the reports in front of her, Calla placed her hand on her cheek. She could feel her fingers trembling.Suddenly, she looked up and asked, "You kept searching for me in Greendale to get me pregnant so you could use the baby's umbilical cord blood to save Casper?"From the timeline Mercer had explained, Casper's condition must have been severe by then.Cal
Mercer smiled bitterly. "I knew that you wouldn't believe me, so I prepared a copy of Casper's medical reports. You can take a look." He pulled out several thick envelopes and set them on the coffee table. Calla frowned upon seeing those envelopes which were all an inch thick. She opened one of them and flipped through the documents inside, frowning as she read. The envelope held reports of Casper's hospitalization in both the city and state hospitals, spanning two years, starting from when Casper was a year old. They were records of Casper's illness and his recovery process.Calla couldn't help thinking about his adorable, chubby face, and she felt her heart clench. She wondered how Casper had managed to triumph over his illness after two years. She couldn't even fathom how painful and difficult the process must have been.Suddenly, Calla noticed something in Casper's surgery reports—a note about how a newborn baby's umbilical cord blood was miraculously compatible with Casper.
"My heart is already in pieces because of you. So what if I hit, cursed, or even stabbed you now? What's the point of doing all that? I beg this of you, Mercer, please let me live my life quietly and stop bothering me!"Stop making up all these ridiculous justifications too. I'm tired—exhausted! I don't want to deal with you anymore," Calla sobbed, tears running down her face.She knew that she shouldn't have cried in front of him. It wasn't just a sign of her weakness, it might also fuel his assumption that she still cared for him. However, she couldn't control it. Whenever she thought of the suffering she'd gone through in the past couple of years, tears ran uncontrollably down her face."I want nothing more than for you to let me tell you the truth in its entirety. I want you and Casper to not miss out on the chance to reconnect as mother and son. "I promise that I'll respect your choice once I'm done telling you everything, and I won't bother you again in the future!" Mercer l
Calla's eyes widened as she remembered everything that had happened in the past. She stumbled over her words as she said, "B-But we were going to get married after we were back on good terms with each other, and I'd already met Casper at that point. Why didn't you tell me about him back then?"Mercer looked at Calla meaningfully. "Do you remember when I told you, on the day we were about to get our marriage certificate, that I had a big surprise for you?"Calla thought about it, then nodded. He had indeed said that he'd prepared a big gift for her. Could the gift have been Casper?Facing Calla's doubtful look, Mercer nodded. "Yes. I wanted to tell you after we received our marriage certificates, but I didn't expect something else to happen on that day."Calla sneered. "'Something else' is a nice way of putting it. You didn't go to get the marriage certificates done with me, because you chose to hold a press conference with Sophie instead, announcing your marriage with her."When
Mercer's face fell. He sat on an armchair before asking Calla, "Do you dislike me that much? Are you not even willing to stay by my side for one minute?""I don't dislike you—I hate you. Also, one minute is too long—I can't even bear to stay by your side for one second!" Calla replied without hesitation.As memories—filled with love and resentment alike—flashed in Calla's mind, she felt an intense hatred for Mercer. If not for Casper, she would never have stepped inside this place again, much less take a seat across Mercer to have a conversation.Calla's words hurt Mercer. He sat there for a while with his head lowered before lighting up a cigarette and taking a long drag.Calla couldn't help coughing when the acrid smell of smoke entered her nose. Realizing that he'd made her cough, Mercer quickly stubbed the cigarette in his ashtray. Calla didn't want to waste any more time with him. She asked impatiently, "Why did you have me come here? Who is the woman you had Casper with?"
Calla finished getting ready, slung her bag over her shoulder, and walked over to Clover. She gave her a quick peck on the cheek and then turned to Fiona. "Fiona, I'm going out to meet a friend.""Okay," Fiona replied with a smile, then continued feeding Clover some water.Calla left the apartment and was about to press the elevator button when Pierre emerged from the opposite door."Hey, aren't you supposed to be off work today? Where are you going this early?" Pierre asked, noticing Calla was heading out."Oh, I'm meeting Alicia. She's going back to work tomorrow, so we're hanging out later," Calla replied hastily, avoiding eye contact with Pierre. She had never been good at lying."She's going to be your bridesmaid. It's only right to express our gratitude," Pierre said with a smile, walking into the elevator with Calla."Where are you meeting her? I can give you a ride," Pierre offered."We're meeting at the department store. It's not on your way, so you should get going. I'
Calla was initially certain that Mercer's goal was to use Casper to ruin her marriage with Pierre.But as the night wore on, Calla's doubts grew. She couldn't shake the feeling that maybe—just maybe—Mercer was telling the truth. Perhaps Casper was indeed her child, the one she had given birth to all those years ago.She couldn't help but feel a glimmer of hope. What if her child had not died? What if he was still alive and well?As the first light of dawn crept into the room, Calla made a decision. She would go see Mercer, no matter what his motives were. She had to get to the bottom of it.Calla gazed at Clover, who was still fast asleep. She gently stroked her daughter's cheek. "Clover, don't you think it would be wonderful to have an older brother to share your toys and adventures with?Clover's chubby face didn't move. Calla's eyes lingered on her for a moment before she spoke again. "I have to get to the bottom of this no matter what the outcome is. I have to find out if Casp